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Building Permit / Certificate of Occupancy in Clifton, Arizona

The Town of Clifton's general-purpose building permit, required for construction, alteration, repair, moving, or occupancy-change of a structure within Town limits. Reviewed against the 2009 International Building Code, International Residential Code (R-3 occupancies), and related 2009-edition ICC codes (Chapter 151) by the Building Official function housed in the Code Enforcement/Building Department, with sequential sign-offs from the Planning and Zoning Administrator, Flood Plain Administrator (if applicable), Town Manager (if in the Historic District), and Code Enforcement Officer. Applied for using the combined 'Building Permit/Certificate of Occupancy Application' form.

Verified 2026-07-07 · Source

When you need this permit

  • Building permit required for construction, alteration, repair, moving, or a certificate of occupancy for a structure within Clifton town limits, per Code of Ordinances Chapter 151
  • Work must conform to the 2009 IBC, 2009 IRC (R-3 occupancies), 2009 IPC, 2009 IMC, 2009 IEBC, and the Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings (1997) as adopted by Chapter 151
  • Whenever a building permit is issued and a building inspection performed, the building must also conform to the Town's Zoning Ordinance (§ 151.02) — reviewed and signed off by the Planning and Zoning Administrator against the Official Zoning Map
  • If the property/structure is within the 100-year flood plain, the application routes to the Flood Plain Administrator and a Flood Plain Development Permit section of the same form (required for substantial repairs/improvements — cost equal to or exceeding 50% of the structure's market value)
  • If the property is located in the Clifton Townsite Historic District, a Certificate of Appropriateness must first be granted by the Town's Historic Preservation Commission before a building permit can be issued (Town Manager sign-off block on the application)
  • If the project is $50,000 or more in value and involves an out-of-state contractor, a certificate of compliance with A.R.S. § 42-5007 (Department of Revenue bonding certificate) must be obtained prior to permit issuance
  • If the property/structure is new with no existing address plaque, the owner must obtain a Town-supplied address plaque ($110.00) and file a new sewer-tap application tying the line into the main sewer line (Code Enforcement Officer sign-off)
  • Applicant provides a Contractor's Estimate or itemized Cost of Materials plus Estimated Labor Cost; the total of materials and labor determines the permit fee (no separately published valuation-based fee table)
  • Submitted by emailing codeenforcement@cliftonaz.gov or bringing the completed application to the Code Enforcement Officer at Clifton Town Hall; no online permitting portal is published
  • Residential submittals should follow the Town's Residential Permit Checklist (site plan, footing/foundation plan, floor plan, floor framing plan for 2-story dwellings, roof framing plan with truss calculations, exterior elevations with attic ventilation calculations, electrical plans)

Required documents

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Fee schedule

Building Permit FeeClifton Code of Ordinances § 151.03 states fees 'shall be set from time to time by resolution of the Council'; neither the Town's Rates and Fees schedule (effective 8/10/2025) nor its FY2026 proposed misc-fee schedule contains a building-permit fee line item. Confirm the current fee directly with the Code Enforcement/Building Department (928-865-4146 / codeenforcement@cliftonaz.gov) before budgeting a project.
Determined by total project cost (Contractor's Estimate or itemized Cost of Materials plus Estimated Labor Cost, as entered on the application) — no separately published valuation-based fee table was located
Address Plaque (new structure with no existing address plaque)Town of Clifton Building Permit/Certificate of Occupancy Application — flat fee for a Town-supplied address plaque; a new sewer-tap application is also required
$110.00

Review timeline

Plan review
Not published — contact the department

How long did your Building Permit / Certificate of Occupancy permit actually take in Clifton?

Anonymous — one question, no email. Answers are combined and only shown once at least 5 people have reported.

Inspection process

  1. 1

    Building Official / Building Inspector Inspection(s)

    Chapter 151 vests all building, plumbing, electrical, and other inspection authority in the Building Inspector (or such other person as the Town Manager may appoint); the Town's public-facing materials do not publish a named inspection sequence (e.g., footing/framing/final) — inspections are scheduled directly with the Building Department as work progresses

See the full Clifton inspection guide — scheduling & re-inspection fees →

Tips

  • Clifton's adopted building code is the 2009 IBC/IRC/IPC/IMC/IEBC (Ord. 04-2010, passed 7-8-2010) — confirmed independently by both the Code of Ordinances and the Town's own Residential Permit Checklist ('The Town of Clifton is currently using the 2009 ICB Codes'). No later code-update ordinance was found published, so this is over a decade behind the 2024 ICC cycle used by larger AZ cities like Buckeye — matching the same vintage as sibling Greenlee County town Duncan (also 2006/2009-era codes).
  • No building-permit fee dollar table is published anywhere on the Town's site — the application form only has the applicant fill in a cost breakdown with the note 'The total costs will determine permit fee,' and neither the current (8/10/2025) nor FY2026-proposed misc-fee schedules include a building-permit line item. Confirm the exact fee directly with the Code Enforcement/Building Department before budgeting.
  • If the property is in the Clifton Townsite Historic District (which includes the Historic Chase Creek area), a Certificate of Appropriateness from the Historic Preservation Commission is required BEFORE a building permit can be issued — budget the codified 21-day Commission review window (§ 152.08) into your project timeline in addition to the building-permit review itself.
  • There is no online permitting portal or application-tracking system — applications are submitted by email to codeenforcement@cliftonaz.gov or in person at Town Hall (510 North Coronado Boulevard, Monday-Thursday 7:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.).
  • The current Building Demolition Application form in circulation contains stale boilerplate referencing the 1994 UBC and an old 'Chapter 14' flood numbering — rely on the currently codified Chapter 151 (Building) and Chapter 154 (Flood Damage Prevention, most recently amended 2019) rather than the demolition form's own legacy citations.

Frequently asked questions

Yes — if the property is located in the Clifton Townsite Historic District, a Certificate of Appropriateness must first be granted by the Town's Historic Preservation Commission before a building permit can be issued. The Commission must approve, deny, or approve-with-modifications within 21 days of receiving a completed application, per Code of Ordinances § 152.08. There is no fee for the Certificate of Appropriateness (§ 152.13).

The Town of Clifton does not publish a valuation-based fee table. The applicant provides a Contractor's Estimate or an itemized Cost of Materials plus Estimated Labor Cost on the application, and 'the total costs will determine permit fee' per the application form itself. Confirm the current fee calculation directly with the Building Department. A separate flat $110.00 fee applies for a Town-supplied address plaque on new structures with no existing address plaque.

The Town of Clifton does not publish a review-timeframe figure for its general building permit anywhere on its website, in its Code of Ordinances, or on its Taxes and Fees page. Contact the Building Department directly at 928-865-4146 or codeenforcement@cliftonaz.gov for a project-specific estimate; there is no published A.R.S. § 9-835 time-frame table to cite.

You'll need: Building Permit/Certificate of Occupancy Application; Building Permit Residential Checklist. Depending on your project, Clifton may also ask for: Certificate of compliance with A.R.S. § 42-5007. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Clifton requires 1 inspection(s) for a building permit / certificate of occupancy, in order: Building Official / Building Inspector Inspection(s). Schedule each through Town of Clifton Building Department (Code Enforcement/Building) (928-865-4146).

Apply through Town of Clifton Building Department (Code Enforcement/Building) at 510 North Coronado Boulevard, P.O. Box 1415, Clifton, Arizona 85533. Phone: 928-865-4146, email: codeenforcement@cliftonaz.gov. Office hours: Town Hall hours: Monday - Thursday, 7:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. (closed Friday - Sunday). Building permit and demolition permit applications are submitted by emailing codeenforcement@cliftonaz.gov or bringing them to the Code Enforcement Officer at Clifton Town Hall; no online permitting portal is published.. Official information: https://cliftonaz.com/code-enforcement%2Fbuilding.

The Town of Clifton has adopted the 2009 International Building Code, 2009 International Residential Code (for R-3 occupancies), 2009 International Plumbing Code, 2009 International Mechanical Code, 2009 International Existing Building Code, and the 1997 Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings, per Code of Ordinances Chapter 151 (Ord. 04-2010, passed 7-8-2010). No subsequent code-update ordinance has been found published.

Other permits in Clifton

Building Demolition PermitSolar Photovoltaic (PV) PermitFlood Plain Development PermitHistoric District / Landmark Certificate of AppropriatenessElectric Vehicle (EV) Charger / EVSE PermitSign PermitFire Sprinkler / Fire Alarm PermitCertificate of Occupancy / Change of Use

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